Psalm 109
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
Psalm 109
Prayer for Vindication and Vengeance
To the leader. Of David. A Psalm.
1 Do not be silent, O God of my praise.(A)
2 For wicked and deceitful mouths are opened against me,
speaking against me with lying tongues.
3 They surround me with words of hate
and attack me without cause.(B)
4 In return for my love they accuse me,
even while I make prayer for them.[a](C)
5 So they reward me evil for good
and hatred for my love.(D)
6 They say,[b] “Appoint a wicked man against him;
let an accuser stand on his right.(E)
7 When he is tried, let him be found guilty;
let his prayer be counted as sin.(F)
8 May his days be few;
may another seize his position.(G)
9 May his children be orphans
and his wife a widow.(H)
10 May his children wander about and beg;
may they be driven out of[c] the ruins they inhabit.
11 May the creditor seize all that he has;
may strangers plunder the fruits of his toil.(I)
12 May there be no one to do him a kindness
nor anyone to pity his orphaned children.(J)
13 May his posterity be cut off;
may his name be blotted out in the second generation.(K)
14 May the iniquity of his father[d] be remembered before the Lord,
and do not let the sin of his mother be blotted out.(L)
15 Let them be before the Lord continually,
and may his[e] memory be cut off from the earth.(M)
16 For he did not remember to show kindness
but pursued the poor and needy
and the brokenhearted to their death.(N)
17 He loved to curse; let curses come on him.
He did not like blessing; may it be far from him.(O)
18 He clothed himself with cursing as his coat;
may it soak into his body like water,
like oil into his bones.(P)
19 May it be like a garment that he wraps around himself,
like a belt that he wears every day.”
20 May that be the reward of my accusers from the Lord,
of those who speak evil against my life.(Q)
21 But you, O Lord my Lord,
act on my behalf for your name’s sake;
because your steadfast love is good, deliver me.(R)
22 For I am poor and needy,
and my heart is pierced within me.(S)
23 I am gone like a shadow at evening;
I am shaken off like a locust.(T)
24 My knees are weak through fasting;
my body has become gaunt.(U)
25 I am an object of scorn to my accusers;
when they see me, they shake their heads.(V)
26 Help me, O Lord my God!
Save me according to your steadfast love.
27 Let them know that this is your hand;
you, O Lord, have done it.(W)
28 Let them curse, but you will bless.
Let my assailants be put to shame;[f] may your servant be glad.(X)
29 May my accusers be clothed with dishonor;
may they be wrapped in their own shame as in a mantle.(Y)
30 With my mouth I will give great thanks to the Lord;
I will praise him in the midst of the throng.(Z)
31 For he stands at the right hand of the needy,
to save them from those who would condemn them to death.(AA)
Psalm 109
International Standard Version
To the Director. A Davidic psalm.
A Prayer against the Evil One
109 God, whom I praise,
do not be silent,
2 for the mouths of wicked and deceitful people
are opened against me;
they speak against me with lying tongues.
3 They surround me with hate-filled words,
attacking me for no reason.
4 Instead of receiving[a] my love, they accuse me,
though I continue in prayer.
5 They devise evil against me instead of good,
and hatred in place of my love.
6 Appoint an evil person over him;
may an accuser stand at his right side.[b]
7 When he is judged, may he be found guilty;
may his prayer be regarded as sin.
8 May his days be few;
may another take over his position.[c]
9 May his children become fatherless,
and his wife a widow.
10 May his children roam around begging,
seeking food[d] while driven far[e] from their ruined homes.
11 May creditors seize all his possessions,
and may foreigners loot the property he has acquired.[f]
12 May no one extend gracious love to him,
or show favor to his fatherless children.
13 May his descendants[g] be eliminated,
and their memory[h] be erased from the next generation.
14 May his ancestors’ guilt be remembered in the Lord’s presence,
and may his mother’s guilt not be erased.
15 May what[i] they have done[j] be continually in the Lord’s presence;
and may their memory be excised from the earth.
16 For he didn’t think to extend gracious love;
he harassed to death the poor, the needy, and the broken hearted.[k]
17 He loved to curse—may his curses[l] return upon him!
He took no delight in blessing others[m]—
so may blessings[n] be far from him.
18 He wore curses like a garment—
may they[o] enter his inner being like water
and his bones like oil.
19 May those curses[p] wrap around him like a garment,
or like a belt that one always wears.
20 May this be the way the Lord repays my accuser,
those who speak evil against me.
21 Now you, Lord my God, defend[q] me for your name’s sake;
because your gracious love is good, deliver me!
22 Indeed, I am poor and needy,
and my heart is wounded within me.
23 I am fading[r] away like a shadow late in the day;
I am shaken off like a locust.
24 My knees give way[s] from fasting,
and my skin is lean, deprived of oil.
25 I have become an object of derision to them—
they shake their heads whenever they see me.
26 Help me, Lord my God!
Deliver me in accord with your gracious love!
27 Then they will realize that your hand is in this—
that you, Lord, have accomplished it.
28 They will curse,
but you will bless.
When they attack,[t] they will[u] be humiliated,
while your servant rejoices.
29 May my accusers be clothed with shame
and wrapped in their humiliation as with a robe.
30 I will give many thanks to the Lord with my mouth,
praising him publicly,
31 for he stands[v] at the right hand of the needy one,
to deliver him from his accusers.[w]
Footnotes
- Psalm 109:4 The Heb. lacks receiving
- Psalm 109:6 Lit. hand
- Psalm 109:8 Or office
- Psalm 109:10 The Heb. lacks food
- Psalm 109:10 So LXX; the Heb. lacks while driven far
- Psalm 109:11 Or the result of his labor
- Psalm 109:13 Lit. May those after him
- Psalm 109:13 Or their name
- Psalm 109:15 The Heb. lacks what
- Psalm 109:15 The Heb. lacks have done
- Psalm 109:16 Or downhearted
- Psalm 109:17 Lit. may it
- Psalm 109:17 The Heb. lacks others
- Psalm 109:17 Lit. it
- Psalm 109:18 Lit. it
- Psalm 109:19 Lit. may it
- Psalm 109:21 Lit. God, do to
- Psalm 109:23 Or walking
- Psalm 109:24 Or knees stagger
- Psalm 109:28 Lit. arise
- Psalm 109:28 So MT DSS 4QPsf 11QPsa; LXX reads arise, let my opponents
- Psalm 109:31 So MT; LXX DSS 11QPsa read he has stood
- Psalm 109:31 Or from those who condemn him
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